So that's what they wrote!

Ooh! Work stuff! Fun.

Back last fall, MTT's client magazine Koelypsy interviewed me about my project. The end result is here. Cool, huh?

Yeah, I don't know what it says either. And I guess they didn't find it interesting enough to translate for the English version. But now, thanks to the magic of our new machine translation service, I finally know!

The powan is adapted to a hydroponics

In a comprehensive study it has been clarified that the effectiveness of the powan's feed use can be intensified with a refining choice. Another custom to choose is growing fast but the with a low percentage of fat powans. In that case also the fish's fat content will decrease and the taste improves.

The hydroponics of the powan of good reputation is on the increase. According to the research institution of game husbandry and fishing industry (RKTL) the powan was cultivated last year nearly 800 000 kilos and 4,4 million euros worthly. The cultivation fish which is more popular than the powan in Finland is only a rainbow trout.

MTT and RKTL try to intensify powan cultivation with a multidisciplinary study because the powan has not adapted itself to the cultivation beings well. In the study which has begun in 2004 the refining programme of the powan's ruokakalakasvatus is being completed the world's first one.

It tells about researcher Cheryl Quinton MTT that in the research project the genetic feed effectiveness of the powan has been analysed.

In the tests a method with which it is possible to measure the nourishment use of the fish individuals which swim in the swarm was used. A tracer visible in the x-ray had been put to the powans' feed. In the test the fish were nukuttaa, was described and the feed consumption was calculated with the help of the sign mass. It was possible to observe the living powan's 1 600 eatings with the method.

- The appetite, growth and fat content of Siikas descended moderately so so their genetic choice probably succeeds, Quinton crystallises.

And a lot people eat and the powans gain weight. Quinton showed that by choosing with a low percentage of fat fish overeating can be reduced. This is likely to increase the effectiveness of the fish's feed use.

Also soybean feed suited

Furthermore, it was compared in the studies the powan which is a carnivore - production properties - on feeds which contain traditional fish flour and a quite new soybean white.

The feed costs have risen, likewise, a worry from the ending up of the decreasing villikalakanta, fish flour. So the feed industry tries to reduce the share of the fish flour in the feeding.

- The same powan families which increased well on the kalajauhorehu grew well also on soijapitoinen feed. The fish which now we are choosing will be among the best also in the future when feeds are kasvisperäinen. The result encourages and the fish's refining programme, farmers and feed industry, Quinton reports.

Hydroponics to increase

The researchers expanded RKTL and examine powan families in the laboratory of Laukaa, in the sea waters of Rymättylä and on the inland waters of Tervo. Furthermore, they draw up the market research and the economic calculation models.

The special researcher, Juha Koskela, who co-ordinates the project states about RKTL that next year the summary of the project in which becomes clear what properties from the powan are worth improving will be completed.

- One choice circuit has been made but the results are seen at the earliest after four years. Then a produced powan is obtained to the market, Koskela says.

The questionnaire surveys of RKTL will promise in the year of the number of the cultivated powan into the even three million kilos of the one growing. Instead the nature fish asked by the professional fishers and the frozen food powan that has been brought from Canada probably stay in about a million kilo, both.

- The supply expands the product range in which case the whole fish loses its share. The special products are more expensive than a round fish. The powan producers succeeded in quadrupling the production in four years and the price has not really fallen. However, the output growth usually lowers the producer price, Koskela thinks.

Koskela uncovers that he has got the best powan in the archipelago of Turku. There was the powan cold-smoked by the powan farmer available over the rye bread that was greased with butter.

Right. That's much clearer. Powan does indeed seem to be another name for whitefish - I just learned that 10 minutes ago. This is the first time I've heard about hydroponics in this project though.

Things I Like About Finland 1: No Radio Edits

In an effort to be more positive, and with my time in FI drawing to a close, I thought I should write up some of the things I really like here. Consider this part 1 of a series.

Things I Like About Finland 1: No Radio Edits.

The radio stations here, at least for English-language lyrics, don't censor swearing in songs. No bleeps, blanks, or PG word replacement. I think this is great, also more honest. Really, all of us know what those lyrics are, even the 10 year olds who are supposedly traumatized by hearing them. I'm guessing that the type of people who are traumatized by swearing probably aren't listening to that station anyway.

Anyway, the result is, at any time of day, morning, noon, whenever, you can hear undiluted Eminem or Rage Against The Machine. Or this charming little tune that was blasting out my car radio at lunchtime today:





Goodness. I haven't been that impressed with sexy-yet-completely-unromantic use of the f-expletive since Closer.

I've asked about radio edits here, and was told it's just not done. Possibly English swearing doesn't really bother people because it's not the native language, and therefore doesn't have the same impact. Similarly, I know a few choice Finnish words, and while I can shock the locals a bit by using them, they don't do anything for me because they're just sounds. I don't know if they censor the Finnish-language songs.

Do a back up! And I love del.icio.us despite not being able to remember where the dots go.

Having downscaled the Facebook usage somewhat, I really should be updating this more often. So.

Discovered yesterday that my photos from last year's Norway trip got lost in last fall's hard drive meltdown. So annoyed. I downloaded some back off my Flickr page, but it's only a few and they're not full size. Lesson: back up more frequently.

On a more amusing image-related topic, I finally caught up with 2005 and made myself a South Park icon:


And while we're being silly, I just managed to catch Cloverfield at its last theatre showing. (You're thinking: she doesn't need to link that; but yes, judging from the completely blank looks that everyone here gave me when I mentioned it, I do.) Really, it has to be seen huge, otherwise there's no point. So now I can stop desperately avoiding spoilers on that and move on to desperately avoiding spoilers from Battlestar Galactica (repeat above aside).

Started using del.icio.us about a week ago, and I'm completely hooked. Doesn't look like much, but it's so far the best tool I've used to track my surfing. Check out the new tag cloud on the sidebar. Probably an excellent research tool, but of course I'm also using it to track the trainwreck of a concept that is a Year Zero tv series.